Farmers in 3 provinces pin hopes on P4.9-B dam

GAPAN, Nueva Ecija -- A proposed giant dam situated near an illegal logging zone in the province is being hailed as the ultimate solution to the growing demand for irrigation water of some 10,000 farmers in Central Luzon.

The P4.9-billion Balintingon Reservoir Multipurpose Project (BRMPP) located in the tri-boundaries of Nueva Ecija, Bulacan and Pampanga and whose proposed water supply is the notorious Sumacbao River, could solve the perennial irrigation woes of farmers in 11 municipalities in southern Nueva Ecija, San Ildefonso, San Miguel and San Rafael in Bulacan and Arayat in Pampanga, according to the National Irrigation Administration-Upper Pampanga River Integrated Irrigation Systems (NIA-UPRIIS).

Engineer Antonio Nangel, operations manager of the NIA-UPRIIS which operates the mammoth Pantabangan Dam, said that the provincial government is planning to revive the plan to pursue the hydro-power project.

He said that Gov. Tomas Joson III is presently scouting for a BOT (build-operate-transfer) proponent to finance the project which could potentially irrigate 18,800 hectares in the three Central Luzon provinces. "Definitely, this hydro-power project will solve the ever-growing needs of farmers for a steady supply of irrigation for our farms," Nangel said.

The BRMPP was first conceived by the national government and the Italian consultant Electroconsult following a reconnaissance study carried out in 1976. The project was intended for the multipurpose use of Sumacbao River, one of the two main tributaries of the Peñaranda River which connects through the Pampanga River.

The project was found to be economically feasible with an Economic Internal Rate of Return (EIRR) of 15.8 percent and Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) of 1.5 percent.

Sumacbao River has gained notoriety for being known as a route of illegal loggers from the Gen. Tinio-Doña Remedios Trinidad area, site of the series of mob rule perpetrated by loggers. The area is traversed by the Philippine-Japan Friendship Highway connecting Manila to Cagayan Valley through the urban center of Gapan.

Engineer Reynaldo D. Puno, chief of the NIA-UPRIIS district IV based in this town, said the project, if pushed, could irrigate a maximum service area of 63,000 hectares, including the eastern extension areas of the foot of Sierra Madre.

"If only we could operationalize it, the NIA-UPRIIS District IV may even operate independently of the Pantabangan and Casecnan dams," he said.

Under the feasibility for the BRMPP, a rockfill central core, 140-meter high dam is being proposed to be built in the boundary of the three provinces to regualte the discharge of its catchment area of 228 square kilometers and has a reservoir storage capacity of 572 million cubic meters.

Among the dam's supplementary features are the construction of a 710-meter long tunnel, a 140-meter long diversion weirs, an open-air powerhouse equipped with two Frances turbines with a power-generating capacity of 22 megawatts each, 109 kilometers of main canals, 168 kilometers of lateral and sublaterals, 210 kilometers of drainage channels and access and service roads.

Puno said that the project provides for other benefits such as planting of diversified crops, fishery and employment opportunities. -- Manny Galvez